“Walk in Grace”: A Kitchen-Table Talk on Cultivating Care, Dignity, Love, and Respect in Education

ABSTRACT

Grounded in the power of our interconnectedness and humanity, this kitchen-table talk explores what it means to cultivate care, dignity, love, and respect in education. We begin by sharing personal offerings and stories that center us in this conversation, and these lead us to exploring the possibilities in showing care and feeling cared for in education spaces. We name the vitality and urgency of this work and discuss the impact of collaborating with others as we push forward. Recognizing a variety of challenges that serve to hinder our efforts, we close by reviewing what keeps us going and offering some advice to those unsure of their next opportunity for impact.

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No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.

Notes on contributors

Erika Lala

Erika Lala is a PhD student in social justice education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where she studies dialogue facilitation. She holds a Master of Public Policy degree, an Education Specialist degree, and a graduate certificate in advanced feminist studies. Having worked mostly in higher education and in the nonprofit sector, she currently serves as an InclusionBoston Manager at YW Boston and as a Student Outreach & Support Specialist at Tufts University.

Kakali Bhattacharya

Kakali Bhattacharya is a multiple award-winning professor at the University of Florida. Housed in the Research, Evaluation, and Measurement program, she serves as a qualitative methodologist for the College of Education. For the last 15 years, she has explored qualitative research through critical, (de)colonial, creative, transnational, and contemplative perspectives. She has written over 80 publications, including peer-reviewed articles, books, and book chapters, in addition to editorial responsibilities with a Routledge book series entitled “Futures of Data Analysis in Qualitative Research” and guest editorships of several special issues of journals such as Qualitative Inquiry, International Review of Qualitative Research, and International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education. Her work has opened up new spaces in interdisciplinary (de)colonizing work and qualitative research where creativity and contemplative approaches are legitimized and seen as necessary gateways for cultivating depth, integrity, expansive inquiry, and discovering critical insights.

Sonia Nieto

Sonia Nieto is a professor emerita of language, literacy, and culture in the College of Education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Her research on multicultural education, Latinx education, and teacher education has been published in 13 books and dozens of journal articles and book chapters. A member of the National Academy of Education and a Fellow of the American Educational Research Association, she has received numerous awards for her scholarly work, teaching, advocacy, and activism, including nine honorary doctorates. The first edition (1992) of her classic text Affirming Diversity: The Sociopolitical Context of Multicultural Education was featured in the Museum of Education’s Reader Guide as one of the 100 books that helped define the field of education in the twentieth century.

José Luis Vilson

José Luis Vilson is a veteran educator, writer, speaker, and activist in New York City, New York. He is the author of This Is Not a Test: A New Narrative on Race, Class, and Education and has spoken about education, math, and race for a number of organizations and publications, including The New York Times, The Guardian, TED, El Diario La Prensa NY, and The Atlantic. He is a National Board certified teacher, a Math for America Master Teacher, and the executive director of EduColor, an organization dedicated to race and social justice issues in education. He is currently a doctoral student studying sociology and education at Teachers College, Columbia University, and is on the boards of directors for the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and PowerMyLearning.